[UW Evans 2014 Admitted Thread]

Accepted on Friday with better financial aid than I expected!

 

UW was the only school I wanted to go to so am quite pleased! I'll be at the Open House in April for sure. 

[Prestige v. Price]

I am not in this major, I am a social work major.. but this is a little conundrum for me too. For undergrad I went to a state school and I applied to private grad schools. One of my professors had gone to Boston College, and he dropped some wisdom that may help. He said that if I wanted to stay and working in my state, that is fine because the program is known... But if I wanted to go to another state to get a job, a more well known University, would hold most likely hold more weight because it is more universally known.

 

I definitely agree that name recognition would be helpful if I wanted to move out of state. I can't imagine living in either state (Washington or Illinois) forever, so it would be good to have some flexibility. 

 

But I wonder if gaining a few years of relevant work experience in each state would outweigh the case of name recognition? For instance, maybe there's a work experience equivalent to name recognition:

 

MA from ISU + three years work experience = MPA from UW + 2 years of work experience   ??

[Prestige v. Price]

Thanks for all your input. Really provided me with a lot to think about. 

 

garlica - Nice to meet another AmeriCorps member in the same boat! I find that AmeriCorps helps open quite a few doors for Grad school, but still doesn't set you up to afford the full tuition. I also have some undergrad loans left over (I graduated with 19 G in debt, but will only have 8 G left when I use my ed awards - not huge, but the interest rate is high) 

 

In regards to the difference between the two programs, I would say that I am more inclined towards the MPA because I can specialize (international development most likely), and also because I have a little more flexibility with the course selection than the MA at ISU. But as quite a few of you have mentioned, there is still some question about whether the choice will really have that long of an effect. 

 

lbjane - I won't hear back from UW for another month (mid-March), so I'm jumping the gun a bit when it comes to deciding which program would be best. I'm a little stressed about the entire issue and I thought if I got a few opinions from people in the same boat it would help me chill out a bit. Receiving financial aid from UW would definitely sway my decision but my stats are only a bit above average when compared to acceptance stats so I don't have too much confidence that I'll receive a lot (or any) aid. UW has a very good track record with setting up alumni at well known public organizations, but ISU alumni often get hired at the organization they intern for in their second year. 

 

I think both programs have their merits - I studied Poli Sci in undergrad so it would be nice to continue studying it in Grad school, but an MPA would be more targeted towards working for public organizations I think. 

 

Anyway, thanks for all the input and feel free to address some of the issues I've brought up in this post too. 

["Degree not worth the money"]

Information for such articles only includes salaries of individuals who possess a BA but no additional schooling. If you possess a Poli Sci BA, but then pursue an MPA, you would not be included.

 

MPA's tend to be fairly profitable in the long run:

 

http://education.yahoo.net/articles/why_go_to_grad_school.htm (check out #4)

[Prestige v. Price]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm a frequent visitor of GradCafe and really appreciate all the insight provided by everyone in their various steps of grad school applications.

 

I have a bit of a quandary regarding grad school for next Fall that I hope you can help me with.

 

I have applied early decision for UW's MPA program and feel that I have a good chance of getting in. I've lived in Washington for the past year so would qualify for in-state tuition (about 20 G a year), but am finding the idea of taking out more loans for grad school quite daunting. I am currently serving a second term of AmeriCorps so my income doesn't allow me to save a lot.

 

I have been on the AmeriCorps website a few times to check out schools that match the ed award. Most offer scholarships for alumni of around $1000 to $5000. Illinois State's Political Science Masters program, however, offers a tuition waiver for the entire program, a GA for the first year (monthly stipend of $900) and an 11 month internship the second year (monthly stipend of $1800).

 

So if you were in my shoes and accepted to both programs, what would you prioritize - prestige or price?

 

My concerns: That if I pick the cheaper option it will hurt me in the long run and limit my opportunities post-grad. (Ideally, I would like to work for international non-profits or for the state department).

 

Thoughts?